The invention relates to a structure of a serpentine-type vending rack mounted on a vending machine for selling canned goods or merchandise.
The serpentine-type vending rack has been well known, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,569, and a conventional structure thereof is shown in FIGS. 4(a) to 4(c). In the drawings, numeral 1 represents a vending rack, and 2 represents rack side walls. Numeral 3 represents rack segments arranged in front and rear sides for bridging the right and left rack side walls 2, and numeral 4 represents merchandise passages in a serpentine-shape, each being defined between a pair of front and rear rack segments 3. Numeral 5 represents top trays disposed on a side of merchandise supply ports or inlets of an upper part of the rack and connected to the respective merchandise passages 4. Numeral 6 represents swingable merchandise supply guides or flappers in a curved form disposed at inlet corners of the merchandise passages 4 on the back sides of the top trays 5. Numeral 7 represents star-wheel type vending mechanisms, each provided at a side of a merchandise outlet end at a lower side of the rack corresponding to each merchandise passage 4. Numeral 8 represents outlet regulating plates, each being situated opposite to the vending mechanism 7 with an outlet passage 9 therebetween.
Incidentally, the example shown in the drawings is called a double serpentine rack, wherein the merchandise passages 4 are provided in the rack in two rows at front and rear sides, and the two vending mechanisms 7 corresponding to the respective merchandise passages 4 are disposed in the center of the vending rack 1 in a back-to-back arrangement. The outlet regulating plates 8 are provided at the front and rear sides so that the vending mechanisms 7 are disposed therebetween.
The vending operation of the machine with the structure as described above has been known, wherein when merchandises 10 are supplied from a front side of the vending rack 1 onto the top tray 5, the merchandises 10 roll on the top tray 5 from an inlet side to an inside, and hit the merchandise supply guide 6 in the rear end. The merchandises 10 change the direction, and fall down into the merchandise passage 4 so that the merchandises are piled up vertically in a line. The lowest merchandise situated in the outlet passage 9 is held between the star-wheel of the vending mechanism 7 and the outlet regulating plate 8 to thereby remain in a sale waiting position. The lowest merchandise 10 in this state is released and falls down when the vending machine is operated by a sale command. Incidentally, the merchandise sent out from the vending rack 1 is transferred to a merchandise exit port through a chute.
Also, in case the serpentine-type vending rack having the above-mentioned structure is changed to supply the merchandise 10 having a different diameter, i.e. large diameter can or small diameter can, it is especially necessary to adjust a width B of the outlet passage 9 between the vending mechanism 7 and the outlet regulating plate 8, and a space A between a rear end of the top tray 5 and the rack segment 3 so that the width B and the space A coincide with a can diameter d of the merchandise 10. As prior adjusting means for this purpose, the top tray 5 is provided with pins 11 at the front and rear ends, and the pins 11 are fitted in regulating grooves 12 of a reversed U-shape formed on the rack side walls 2, so that the top trays 5 are held to be movable in a lateral, i.e. front and rear, direction. Also, as in the top tray 5, the outlet regulating plate 8 is provided with pins 13 at the upper and lower ends thereof, and the pins 13 are fitted into regulating grooves 14 formed on the rack side walls 2, so that the outlet regulating plate 8 is held to be movable in a lateral direction.
In the vending machine of the prior structure as stated above, when a merchandise is changed to another merchandise with a different size, the adjusting operation of the passage widths at the merchandise supply portion and the merchandise outlet portion has to be separately carried out at the top tray 5 and the outlet regulating plate 8. Therefore, the adjusting operation takes time and labor. Moreover, there may be an error in the adjusting operation such that the passage width on the merchandise supply portion side and the outlet passage width on the merchandise outlet portion side differ from each other relative to the size of the merchandise.
For example, in case a large diameter merchandise (large sized can) is sold, even if the outlet regulating plate 8 is set at a correct position, if the top tray 5 is mistakenly set at a position for a small diameter merchandise (small sized can), the merchandise supplied from the merchandise supply port is stopped at the rear end of the top tray 5 and does not fall down into the merchandise passage 4 to be received therein. On the contrary, if the outlet regulating plate 8 is erroneously set so that the width of the outlet passage 9 is narrower than a diameter of the can, the merchandise is stopped at a point transferring from the merchandise passage 4 to the outlet passage 9. Thus, there may be various problems in conveying the merchandise.
The present invention has been made based on the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a manageable serpentine-type vending rack of a vending machine, wherein the passage widths on a merchandise supply side and a merchandise outlet side can be simultaneously and inter-relatedly adjusted by an adjusting operation from one point.